The use of pluripotent stem cells is dramatically altering the R&D landscape, providing new insights into both the basic biology of disease progression and novel cell types for pharmaceutical drug screening. Additionally, pluripotent stem cells are already in clinical use for a number of disease indications. However, one limitation of the work to date is that in-vitro studies have largely focused on highly penetrant point mutations known to directly lead to a disease phenotype. While useful, this approach may not always be applicable to idiopathic versions of the same disease. For the majority of diseases, underwritten by common causal variants, modeling using only a limited number of cell lines is insufficient.
To overcome these issues, we have developed a fully automated platform which allows high throughput cell biology to be accomplished: from reprogramming of hundreds of cell line in parallel to high throughput differentiations, large scale experiments can now be performed to interrogate these diseases. Here we report on progress in adapting the NYSCF Global Stem Cell Array technology to encompass high throughput genome editing as well as large-scale differentiations and screens. we will present a number of case studies highlighting the continued development of this automated system for stem cell biology.

Jordan Goldberg

Jordan Goldberg is an Automation Engineer at the NYSCF Research Institute. Jordan programs robotic systems and develops assays on the NYSCF Global Stem Cell Array for both the production of induced pluripotent stem cells and development of novel tools using the robotic platform including such areas as gene editing and differentiation. In addition he helps develop a number of collaborative projects aimed at developing research across a range of disease areas as well as facilitating relationships with other researchers in order to harness the power of the NYSCF Global Stem Cell Array Team. He received his Masters Degree in Biotechnology from Columbia University in New York, NY.